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Contents

‘Shakespeare’s comic masterpiece of love, mistaken identities

and magical mayhem has been the source of inspiration for artists of all genres for centuries.

My aim is to create something fresh and

vibrant, bubbling with all the delight and humour that Shakespeare offers

us through the wonderful array of characters he conjured up. As with

any great story I want to take my audience on a journey so that every

individual can have their own Midsummer Night’s Dream.”

LIAM SCARLETT

Curriculum 3

Ballet based on Shakespeare’s play 4

A Midsummer Night’s Dream (world premiere) 5

The story of A Midsummer Night’s Dream 7

A brief synopsis for the classroom 7

Mendelssohn’s music for A Midsummer Night’s Dream 8

A new score for a new ballet 9

A Midsummer Night’s Dream set and costumes 11

Q & A with set and costume designer Tracy Grant Lord 13

Introducing lighting designer Kendall Smith 15

Origin of the fairies 16

A Midsummer Night’s Dream word puzzle 17

Identify the characters with their emotions 18

Ballet timeline 20

Let’s dance! 21

Identifying the two groups of characters through movement 23

Answers 24

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CurriCulumIn this unit you and your students will: • Learn about the elements that come

together to create a theatrical ballet experience.

• Identify the processes involved in making a theatre production.

CURRICULUM LINKS IN ThIS UNITValues Students will be encouraged to value:• Innovation, inquiry and curiosity, by thinking

critically, creatively and reflectively. • Diversity, as found in our different cultures

and heritages.• Community and participation for the

common good.

KEy COMpETENCIES • Using language, symbols and text –

Students will recognise how choices of language and symbols in live theatre affect people’s understanding and the ways in which they respond.

• Relating to others – Students will develop the ability to listen actively and share ideas regarding theatrical ballet performances.

• participating and contributing – students will be actively involved in their cultural community, understanding the importance of creative environments.

• Thinking – Students will reflect on their own thinking and learning after the personal experience of attending a live theatre show.

LEARNING OBjECTIVES fOR LEVELS 7 & 8

Level 7 students will learn how to:• Understand dance in context – Investigate

and evaluate the effects of individual, social, cultural, and technological influences on the development of a variety of dance genres and styles.

• Develop practical knowledge – Extend skills in the vocabulary, practices, and technologies of selected dance genres and styles.

• Communicate and interpret – Analyse, explain, and discuss aspects of performance and choreography in a range of dance works.

Level 8 students will learn how to:• Understand dance in context – Investigate,

analyse, and discuss the features, history, issues, and development of dance in New Zealand, including the contribution of selected individuals and groups.

• Develop practical knowledge – Extend and refine skills, practices, and use of technologies in a range of dance genres and styles.

• Communicate and interpret – Critically analyse, interpret, and evaluate the artistic features and the communication of ideas in a range of dance works.

NCEAA Midsummer Night’s Dream, and the use of this resource, is ideal for NCEA Dance teachers and students who are learning to analyse and appreciate a dance performance.

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Ballet Based on shakespeare’s play Shakespeare was undoubtedly the greatest playwright ever. He wrote 38 plays, most of which are still performed all over the world, often. Among his most famous plays are:

hamletOthello

MacbethKing LearThe TempestA Midsummer Night’s DreamRomeo and juliet

Twelfth Night

Born in 1564, Shakespeare died in 1616, at only 52. He produced most of his great works over a 24 year period. Shakespeare is considered a genius – still the best known playwright ever. Not bad 400 years later!

A MiDsuMMEr Night’s DrEAM – ThE pLAyA Midsummer Night’s Dream is Shakespeare’s most famous comedy. It was written around 1595. It was Shakespeare’s first play about marriage. It was probably written to be the light entertainment at a wedding. The title of the play refers to the night of June 24, the shortest night in the Northern Hemisphere. In Shakespeare’s day, it was celebrated with festivals, singing and dancing. In earlier times, people thought Midsummer’s Night was a time of magic, when fairies cast spells and strange things happened.

A MiDsuMMEr Night’s DrEAM AS A BALLET – DEVELOpED IN 1962A Midsummer Night’s Dream was choreographed into a two-act ballet by the famous choreographer George Balanchine, and set to Felix Mendelssohn‘s music. In was premiered by the New York City Ballet in New York in 1962. It was Balanchine’s first original full-length ballet

QUIz TIME WhAT DID yOU LEARN?1. Name six other plays written by

Shakespeare.

2. Around which year did Shakespeare write the play A Midsummer Night’s Dream?

3. Which choreographer first created a ballet based on A Midsummer Night’s Dream?

4. In which continent was it premiered?

?

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a midsummer niGht’s dream (World premiere)CHOREOGRAPHY: LIAM SCARLETTMUSIC: FELIX MENDELSSOHNSET & COSTUME DESIGN: TRACY GRANT LORD LIGHTING DESIGN: KENDALL SMITH

LIAM SCARLETTLiam Scarlett (29) is one of world’s most sought-after choreographers. The Royal New Zealand Ballet commissioned him to choreograph this exciting new production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

Liam Scarlett started his career as a Royal Ballet dancer in 2005, and rose to become one of the top dancers of the company. In 2012, he retired from dancing and was appointed as the first Artist in Residence with the Royal Ballet. There he created his major full-length work, Hansel and Gretel, in 2013. His other major achievements at the Royal Ballet included:Few Things Are (2005)Vayamos al Diablo (2006)Despite (2006)Of Mozart (2008)Consolations and Liebestraum (2009)Asphodel Meadows (2010)Sweet Violets (2012)The Age of Anxiety (2014)

At The Royal Ballet, he also created gala works including Jubilee Pas de Deux (2012) for Her Majesty The Queen as part of the Extraordinary World Gala, a Grand Defile with members of The Royal Opera and The Royal Ballet for the IOC Gala and Summertime (2015) for the Life Reimagined gala. He was a member of the Jury for the 1st Beijing International Ballet and Choreography Competition in 2011, and created two Variations for the RAD Genee International Ballet Competition in 2010.

He then went on to create and design ballets worldwide. He has created works for American Ballet Theatre, New York City Ballet, San Francisco Ballet, Royal Danish Ballet, Norwegian National Ballet, English National Ballet, BalletBoyz: The Talent, K-Ballet and Miami City Ballet.

This is his first commission for the Royal New Zealand Ballet, and he is also currently working on a new full length version of Frankenstein for The Royal Ballet in co-production with San Francisco Ballet.

FUN FACT A Midsummer Night’s Dream has

been the inspiration of at least six ballets including, The Dream by

Sir Frederick Ashton, to music by Mendelssohn. It was premiered by

The Royal Ballet at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden in 1964.

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REhEARSALS WITh LIAM SCARLETT AND RNzB DANCERS

Photo: Ellie Richards

the story of a midsummer niGht’s dreama Brief synopsis for the Classroom

ChARACTERS

Oberon – King of the fairiesTitania – Queen of the fairiespuck – apprentice to Oberon

Bottom – a young rustic

helena – in love with DemetriusDemetrius – in love with Hermiahermia – in love with Lysander Lysander – in love with Hermia

Cobweb – a fairyMustardseed – a fairypeaseblossom – a fairyMoth – a fairy

fairies, rustics, changeling boy

SyNOpSISAct IIn a forest clearing, under a moonlit night sky, Titania and Oberon quarrel over who will take a changeling boy found sleeping in the wood. Titania eventually takes the infant. In his rage Oberon calls his apprentice Puck, and sends him to search for a magical flower. When the flower is sprinkled into the eyelids of a person sleeping, it causes the sleeper to fall in love with the first creature he or she sees upon awakening. Oberon plans to use this on Titania in revenge.

Meanwhile, four explorers have entered the forest searching for exotic specimens. A complicated love triangle ensues: Helena pines for Demetrius, who is in turn infatuated with Hermia, who is happily coupled with Lysander. When he sees this, Oberon orders Puck to resolve this situation by using the magic flower to make Demetrius fall in love with Helena. However, Puck confuses the two men, and gives the potion to the wrong one, causing even more trouble.

Titania awakens under the flower’s spell, and falls in love with the rustic Bottom, whom Puck has transformed into a donkey. Oberon spies on the couple, taking great pleasure in Titania’s humiliation. She doesn’t know he is watching.

Act IIWhen he realises Puck’s mistake with Demetrius and Lysander, Oberon is furious. He sets about punishing Puck and resolving the mess. Lysander goes back to loving Hermia and Demetrius finds love with Helena.

Bottom is turned back into a man and, as the night draws to a close, Titania and Oberon resolve their differences. They gently return the sleeping changeling boy to where they found him, and to his own midsummer night’s dreams.

Oberon

Titania

puck

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fELIx MENDELSSOhN (1809 – 1847) Felix was born in Hamburg, the second of four children born into an affluent, highly cultured Jewish family. His grandfather, Moses, was a celebrated philosopher, while his father Abraham was a successful banker. The young Felix and his elder sister Fanny were prodigiously talented. Felix made his public debut as a pianist at the age of nine and was composing prolifically even before he entered his teens.

Some of Mendelssohn’s most frequently performed works date from his early years. The First Symphony Opus 11 was written in 1824; the Octet Opus 20 was completed when he was just 16 and the Overture to A Midsummer Night’s Dream Opus 21 a year later. The latter, written for concert performance rather than as the curtain raiser to a play, is an early example of the concert overture, a new genre which Mendelssohn helped to popularise.

The overture is in sonata form, with clearly defined sections and conventional harmonic progressions. Mendelssohn had read at least one translation of Shakespeare’s play before he began his work and within the tight structure are themes portraying characters

mendelssohn’s musiC for a midsummer niGht’s dream

and incidents from the play. Light, scurrying motifs are linked to the fairy kingdom, while hunting calls and more courtly melodies portray the rustics and the world of the Athenians – punctuated by the braying of a donkey.The incidental music was commissioned by King Friedrich Wilhelm IV of Prussia, in 1842. Fourteen pieces, beginning with the existing overture, included songs using Shakespeare’s texts. The most famous is ‘Spotted snakes’; sung as a lullaby to Titania. Music or ‘melodramas’ accompany spoken words. The purely instrumental music includes the fairies’ Scherzo, the Intermezzo, the Nocturne and the Wedding March, one of Mendelssohn’s most enduringly popular works. It is often played together as a suite, although this was never Mendelssohn’s intention.

To see how Mendelssohn’s Overture makes you think of fairies, click on this video of Kurt Mazur conducting the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra. It’s interesting to note that Mendelssohn was the actual conductor of the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra from 1835 - 1847:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SUDvzaMl4RU

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a neW sCore for a neW Ballet

NIGEL GAyNOR MUSIC DIRECTOR & CONDUCTORThe dazzling overture and incidental music form the majority of the music for Liam Scarlett’s ballet. But these alone are not enough to accompany a full length ballet. Creating a new score for A Midsummer Night’s Dream has been a labour of love for RNZB Music Director Nigel Gaynor.

Over the last year, Nigel has worked with Liam to put together a tailor-made score that fits his vision of the story. Conversations with designer Tracy Grant Lord ensured that the music would allow for practical staging issues, such as Bottom’s separation from his friends. As well as Mendelssohn’s incidental music, Nigel has selected additional music by Mendelssohn to suit the action and to portray many of the characters.

Shakespeare often invokes water imagery when describing Oberon, and Nigel has drawn on the majestic ‘Hebrides’ Overture Opus 26 to portray the Fairy King. Mendelssohn had travelled through the Western Isles aboard a steam ship and the mystery and grandeur of the coastline inspired this well-known work. Puck, who can ‘put a girdle round the earth in 40 minutes’, is personified by the quicksilver Scherzo from the Octet.

Nigel has orchestrated three of Mendelssohn’s Songs Without Words, originally for solo piano. The first, Opus 30 No. 1, portrays contented lovers Hermia and Lysander, while the second, the ‘Hunting Song’ Opus 19 No. 3, is used as

a dance for the rustics. The discontented lovers, Helena and Demetrius, take their music from Mendelssohn’s incidental music: the Intermezzo to portray the lovers’ disharmony.

The well-known ‘Spring Song’ Opus 62 No. 6 comes towards the end of Act I as a comic pas de deux for Titania and Bottom. Symphonies also make an appearance. The opening of Symphony No. 1 portrays Oberon’s anger at the beginning of the story and the second movement of the rambunctious Symphony No. 3 Opus 56 ‘Scottish’ portrays Bottom’s joyful reunion with his friends. The energy and full orchestration of this piece serves to further emphasise the contrast between the earthly characters and the speed and lightness of the fairies. They portrayed with much lighter timbres and transparent orchestral textures.

Throughout this process, Nigel has sought to create ‘unity with contrasts’ in his new score. He makes sure that all the music works together through the use of strongly related keys, seamless transitions, including some specially composed linking passages, and sympathetic orchestration. The freedom of creating a new score has also allowed Nigel some personal touches, including the use of the exotic Ass’s Jaw percussion instrument. This instrument spices up some of the interactions between Puck and the enchanted Bottom.

Nigel will be conducting the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, the Christchurch Symphony Orchestra and the Auckland Philharmonia during the A

Midsummer Night’s Dream tour using click track to incorporate the Orpheus Choir.

In Rotorua, Palmerston North and Napier, the RNZB will be dancing to a New Zealand

Symphony Orchestra recording.9

fUN fACT The Ass’s jawThe jawbone of an ass (donkey) or quijada is literally the jawbone of a large animal left to dry, cleansed of all but bone and teeth. The teeth are removed and reinserted in the socket, held in by wires, thus allowing the teeth to rattle. The method of playing is much like that of a tuning fork as it’s held by the closed end and struck on one side of the open end, generally with one’s fist. This creates a vibration that moves the teeth rapidly, creating a dry rattling sound.

Garry Kvistad, Founder/Owner of Woodstock Chimes and member of NEXUS Percussion.

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TRACy GRANT LORD Tracy Grant Lord is a leading stage designer of ballet, opera and theatre working with the major performance companies throughout Australasia. She has designed many productions for the Royal New Zealand Ballet including both the acclaimed Cinderella and Romeo and Juliet which received an Olivier Award Nomination for Best New Dance Production in the UK (2005). Other career highlights include two Helpmann Award Nominations for the Sydney Theatre Company’s production of In the Next Room (2011) and the Melbourne Theatre Company’s production of The Importance of Being Earnest (2012). Recent projects include the costume design for Queensland Ballet’s Cinderella (2013), Opera Australia’s new production of Rigoletto (2014) and the set and costume design for both Lucia di Lammermoor for Auckland Opera Studio (2014) and Private Lives for Melbourne Theatre Company (2014). Tracy is currently working on Guys and Dolls for Auckland Theatre Company. This year also sees revivals of her set and costume designs in productions of Cinderella for Scottish Ballet and The Sleeping Beauty for Singapore Dance Theatre.

a midsummer niGht’s dream set and CostumesA Midsummer Night’s Dream features set and costumes by distinguished New Zealand designer Tracy Grant Lord. It’s her eighth production for RNZB.

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Set design drawings

Set model design

final set design

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FAIRY WING & TUTU DETAIL

A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM Based on A Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare.

Composed by Felix Mendelssohn.

Royal New Zealand Ballet August 2015 Choreographed by Liam Scarlett.

Designed by Tracy Grant Lord. Lighting Design by Kendall Smith.

COSTUME DESIGNS

FUN FACT There are 27 costume designs

ranging from the fairies to the lovers to the rustics. There are 4 lovers, 8 rustics and the rest are fairies including Titania, Oberon, Puck, Peaseblossom, Cobweb,

Moth and Mustardseed. The fairies all have wings and the rustics have hats.

Titania

Cobweb

Moth

Mustardseed

peaseblossom

puck

DemetriusLysanderhelena

hermia

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What was your design inspiration for the production design (set and costumes) for A Midsummer Night’s Dream?

The starting point for all inspiration when I work on a production for the stage, is the intention of the writers and composers. In this case, they are William Shakespeare and Felix Mendelssohn. There is much to be researched and discovered around the themes of their work, including referencing different time periods and the art and architecture within them. I work toward creating a meaningful design that resonates with both the intentions of these writers and also the company and audience.

Liam Scarlett, the choreographer, has asked for this production to focus on the fairies and the magical world that they inhabit. He asked for the King and Queen, Oberon and Titania, to be very regal and, importantly, that Puck could be seen to be anywhere and everywhere. He’s able to appear from all over the stage and at various heights. This requires a physical structure to be built that is both magical and fairy-like, but that also impinges as little as possible on the floor area available for the dancers to work on. I have chosen very organic lines and shapes to create the structural forms on stage. I want it to look as if the world has grown there of its own accord. I also began with a black world in order to suggest that we, as an audience, are only seeing a partial glimpse of something much bigger. I have used a range of scale in the size of the scenic elements to create a sense of depth and delicacy where it is needed.

What were the design themes for the production?

The story happens over the course of a night, in the forest, so light and the colours of the fairy world in this light became the basis for the palette of the production. The night sky and its effects in the forest, which include moonlight, starlight, dapple, highlights and reflection, all play a part in the detailing of the set. The colours of the

Q & a With set and Costume desiGner traCy Grant lord

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FUN FACT: FLOORING Made by Harlequin Flooring in the UK

and then shipped to New Zealand.

First time the RNZB or anyone in New Zealand has printed an image on

a dance floor (only ever done before by The Royal Ballet and The Bolshoi Ballet).

fairy world are in harmony with this night-time palette. That of the lovers is romantic, while the palette for the rustics is more contrasting with the night world. We have also created a particular type of scenic ‘magic’ by including a fibre-optic flower or bud that grows in the fairy world and which lights up in a range of colours. We use these buds to expand or reduce the focus on stage and also to support with colour the emotional changes that the lead characters go through in the story.

Did you create both sets and costumes together?

I find that creating the design of a physical world and also the design of the characters within that world allows me to concentrate on the harmony of the design. I can keep the style of the production in balance, giving emphasis wherever will to best tell the story visually.

how is designing for dance different to designing for theatre or opera?

The design for ballet allows for quite clear visual storytelling. This can range from work that is highly decorative and detailed, to broader, more impressionistic imagery. Sometimes, the choreography is describing a story that is very detailed and full of plot lines. That requires particular prescriptive design support in the scenery, costume and/or props. At other times, the story is more epic and deals with broader themes that could be emotional or political. They need to be described in more universal or suggestive ways.

FUN FACT: SET DESIGN Tracy spent 4 months designing the set.

Building of the set began in January 2015 and was completed by the first week of August 2015.It took between 2–10 people to build the set.The entire set weight is between 4–5 tonnes.

(It is the heaviest set the RNZB has ever toured).

It will take 3 trucks to tour The Vodafone Season of A Midsummer Night’s Dream within New Zealand.

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FUN FACT: FIBRE OPTICS One person has taken five months to make all the lighting that is part

of the set, consisting of 300-400 bulbs, and 200 stems.

KENDALL SMITh (LIGhTING DESIGNER)

Kendall Smith has been working professionally for the past 30 years both as a designer for the stage and as a consultant for numerous theatre projects throughout the United States. He has designed for concerts, dance, musicals and opera throughout his career. He lit Andrea Boccelli’s U.S. premier opera performance and has worked with famous opera singers like Luciana Pavarotti. As the Resident Lighting Designer for Michigan Opera since 1989 he has lit over 65 productions.

LIGhTING CONCEpT Of A MiDsuMMEr Night’s DrEAMThis piece deals with themes such as love, marriage and authority in a way which is both playful and heartbreaking. Set in Tracy Grant Lord’s mysterious and fantastical atmosphere, I have tried to create spaces that echo the character and emotional quality of Liam’s choreography along with helping to reinforce the beautiful Mendelssohn score from a visual standpoint. Following the lead of Tracy’s costumes, I have gently shifted from the purple and turquoise color palette of Oberon and Puck’s domain to pale cool tints for Titania and her fairies. When the lovers enter the jungle, it transforms into a sensual but frightening place with Puck lurking about in the shadows. The rustics add a bit of comedy to the proceedings, but they too are lost within the realm of the King and Queen.

Within this dream it is important to see the relationships between each of these characters. I have tried to define them in the space, using different angles of light. Low angles accentuate the shadowy atmosphere where Puck manipulates and lures the lovers, and then we shift to top and backlight to better define the fairies and their winged silhouettes. Sometimes sharper lines echo the dangerous game that Puck and Oberon are playing, but then all melt away to a gentler, more romantic atmosphere that is secluded and sensual. The illuminated flora that inhabit this jungle reflect emotions, defining the characters’ passions and fears as they search for their perfect match.

introduCinG liGhtinG desiGner kendall smith

FUN FACT: PODSNine ‘Pods’ in total, three main ones –

acting as separate spaces for the characters’ like little houses.

All made out of timber and steel. Each pod is a different size and has been 3D drawn, then cut

out on a CNC machine and then slotted togetherBottom’s Pod is the heaviest and has the most

steel, as it has to be flown.

Fairy comes from the Old French word Faerie.The word has been overused to describe a type of mythical being or legendary creature in European folklore. There is a great deal of difference in classifying a being as a fairy from the medieval literature and those from modern literature.

Today, when we think of fairies, we often visualise them as tiny, supernatural beings with wings and glowing with uncommon light in today’s children fairy tales. And they also possessed some sorts of strange magical powers, like Tinkleball in the story of Peter Pan or the Fairy Godmother in Cinderella.

However, if we look at the concept of fairies, then you would find that they have been around a lot longer than everyone expects. The earliest form of fairies can be found loosely in the mythical beings in Greek mythology, such as the nymphs, satyrs and sileni.

It was during the time of Queen Elizabeth I of England that William Shakespeare had popularised fairies in English folklore with his play A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

oriGin of the fairies

SpECIAL MAKE Up fOR A MiDsuMMEr Night’s DrEAM fAIRy ChARACTERSM.A.C National Artist Kiekie Stanners has created make up looks for the fairy characters in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, using M.A.C products and working with designer Tracy Grant Lord.

RNZB dancers do their own make up; for A Midsummer Night’s Dream they had a pre-season training session with Kiekie and M.A.C Artist Jumee Wardlaw to ensure that they could perfectly recreate each character’s look.

Stage make up has to last throughout the performance; it often looks exaggerated close up but is designed to be seen from a distance and to enhance the character’s main features so that their expressions can be clearly seen by the audience.

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a midsummer niGht’s dream Word puzzleCan you find the following list of words in the puzzle below?

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S U M M E R N T Y R E A R D O N LL W A K B W I K H E F W Q S B D SI H P U C Q G I G D I L S F O A TA M E P U U K N F N D H M F E N HM E A E P H P L D A A F E T N I GS D S S F E R D D S N A Q L A C IC S E L G F A I R Y P C W Y E A LA H B S S O D E E L S D E S X N MR O L S J O C V A S T E P D B L AL M O O N B A P M H G B R C E N NE O S G T I T A N I A O T S E O NT T S Z W D K C E I U O Y E W W AT T O G H Q I H M X L G U V Y D GL O M C A U T R U L H Q E E K Y IK B O S S E E N S N L R I N C U LA W E H J H J H T O M E G B X D LW Q U E C G D X A B U A N O O M SE R R E W O L F R T T D I J Y L UO B E R O N M U D T H I K G O D IH E E F G D B R S N B B O T M A RO E D S T C V D E L S C P O R S TD N S K H V E N E O C O B W E B EE F S L G B D I D O R D A R K N MR D Y D I K A G H N U A S G M I EL O V E N S H A K E S P E A R E D

FAIRYDREAM NIGHTOBERON KING TITANIA

QUEENPUCK BOTTOM HELENADEMETRIUS SHAKESPEARE

LIAM SCARLETTHERMIA LYSANDER COBWEB MUSTARDSEED FLOWER

PEASEBLOSSOM MOTH MOONLIGHTSSUMMERLOVE

IDENTIfy ThE ChARACTERS WITh ThEIR EMOTIONSMatch the characters with the right list of emotions (some emotions correspond to more than one character).

identify the CharaCters With their emotions

Love

Fear

Frustration

Embarrassment

Joy

Regret

Jealousy

Rejection

Sadness

Disappointment

Anger

Loneliness

Boredom

Surprise

Sorrow

Affection

Bliss

Longing

Hope

Desire

Oberon – King of the fairies

Titania – Queen of the fairies

puck – apprentice to Oberon

Bottom – a young rustic

helena – in love with Demetrius

EMOTIONS:

CHARACTERS:

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NOW LET’S ThINK ABOUT yOU.Let see if you can come up with a list of emotions that reflect how you feel when:

1 You love someone who loves you:

2 You love someone who loves someone else:

Have a look on the Plutchik’s Wheel of Emotions chart to help you find a suitable list of emotions.

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1600

1700

1800

1900

2000

Ballet timeline

1653 Louis XIV dances the Sun God in Le Ballet de la Nuit. His teacher, Pierre Beauchamps, formalises the terms we use as vocabulary in ballet today.

1661 Louis XIV (Sun King) founds the Académie Royale de la Musique, later named the Paris Opera Ballet.

1726–1727 Marie Camargo and her rival, Marie Salle, make debuts in London. Camargo shortens her skirt to show her feet, paving the way for the modern tutu.

1789 Jean Dauberval produces La Fille Mal Gardée, making it the oldest ballet still extant in modern-day repertoire.

1890s Marius Petipa (1818–1910) choreographs the great classics of ballet including The Sleeping Beauty (1890), Swan Lake (1895) and Raymonda (1898).

1828 Marie Taglioni makes her debut at the Paris Opera, dancing on pointe for the first time.

1900s Ballet companies visited New Zealand through the first half of the twentieth century including Adeline Genée, Anna Pavlova, Covent Garden and Russian Ballet.

1953 Poul Gnatt (1923–1995) founds the Royal New Zealand Ballet (RNZB).

1962 A Midsummer Night’s Dream choreographed by George Balanchine to music by Felix Mendelssohn is first performed by the New York City Ballet in New York.

1964 The Dream by Sir Frederick Ashton; a one-act ballet adapted from Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream to music by Mendelssohn, premiered by The Royal Ballet.

1995 The first time that RNZB staged A Midsummer Night’s Dream as a ballet. The choreography was by Ashley Killar.

1998 The St James Theatre becomes the home of RNZB.

2013 The Royal New Zealand Ballet celebrates its 60th anniversary.

2015 20 August – opening night of Liam Scarlett’s brand new A Midsummer Night’s Dream for RNZB.

2014 Appointment of Francesco Ventriglia – RNZB 11th Artistic Director.

let’s danCe!MAKING A SOLO – pORTRAyING AN ANIMAL (USING ThE ELEMENTS Of DANCE)In the ballet of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, one of the characters gets turned into a donkey, and he has to dance like a donkey for part of the ballet!

• Individuallychooseananimalthatyouwouldlike to be turned into.

• Thinkoffiveactivitiesormovementsthatyour chosen animal does, e.g. a cat cleaning its ears, a bird preening, or a horse pawing the ground.

• Whenyouhaveyourfivemovements,modify them by adding some dance elements, e.g. make one of the movements travel; make one jump; make one move through different levels (high, medium and low); or make one extra big.

• Tojoinyourfiveanimalmovementstogether choose some locomotor (travelling) steps to move you around the space, e.g. running, galloping, rolling, and skipping.

• Tocompleteyoursolo,decidewhatyourpathway in the space will be, e.g. travel in a circle, travel from one side of the stage to another, or travel in a zig-zag. You may want to draw a picture of your pathway to help you visualise it.

• Youmayhavetomodifyyourlocomotormovements to get your solo to fit into your pathway.

The five animal actions can be repeated as many times as you like during your solo, and you can find more than one way to manipulate each action/movement.

USING EMOTIONS TO DEVELOp A MOVEMENT phRASE OR AS A STIMULUS TO CREATE NEW MOVEMENTBallet dancers have to be able to portray emotions as they perform so they can help tell the story of the ballet to the audience.

• Chooseanemotionfromthelistbelowand make a shape to express that feeling. Include your face in the shape. (If students are embarrassed, they can stand in a long line next to each-other all facing the same way so they can’t see one another). Do this for a few words.

LOVE FEAR FRUSTRATION EMBARRASSMENT JOY REGRET JEALOUSY REJECTION SADNESS DISAPPOINTMENT ANGER LONELINESSBOREDOM SURPRISE SORROW AFFECTIONBLISS LONGING HOPE DESIRE

• Afteryouhavetriedafewshapestoexpressemotions, try some movements, e.g. an angry jump, a joyful spin or a bored roll.

• Ifyouhavesomeexistingchoreography,tryand execute your phrase or a movement from your phrase to express an emotion, e.g. feel angry when dancing the phrase, so your movements may become stronger and sharper, or you could show longing by really extending your movements (you can focus your movements to one direction and this may help the feeling of longing to be somewhere).

• Ifyoudon’thavesomeexistingchoreography, create the movements and add the emotions at the same time, e.g.

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an angry jump, roll and spin; a frustrated roll, run and arm movement; or a spin, hop and something on the ground that shows excitement. Add linking steps in-between the movements to help them flow together.

• Tohelpmaketheemotionsthatyouareadding to your movements genuine, try and think of a time when you have felt that way, use a scenario from the ballet, or create a situation that makes you feel the emotion that you want to portray.

• Whenyouhavecreatedaphraseoraddedsome emotion to an existing piece of choreography find a partner and perform your piece for them and see if they can tell what you are expressing.

USING EMOTIONS TO CREATE A ShORT GROUp DANCE• Giveeachgroupsomeemotionstowork

with from the list used in the previous activity.

• Individually,eachmemberofthegrouphas to make one movement or shape to express each given emotion (if there are four in a group and you have given them three emotions, they should make twelve movements and/or shapes between them).

• Next,putallofthemovementsand/orshapes together using any linking steps to make the transitions smooth. When putting these together you can use any choreographic devices that you like, e.g. unison, canon, mirroring, different levels and directions.

• Whenallofthemovementshavebeenputtogether, to complete your dance, decide how you want to start and finish – onstage in a group shape or make an entrance and exit.

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identifyinG the tWo Groups of CharaCters throuGh movementIn the Ballet of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, there are two distinct groups of characters – the fairies and the humans. To highlight the differences in these characters, the choreographer has given each group their own and contrasting way of moving

ACTIVITy• Individuallywalkaroundthespace,then

change the way you walk, e.g. take really big steps, then move in a contrasting way by taking really small steps

• Trymovingaroundthespaceindifferentways rather than just walking, and use contrasting dynamics/qualities, speeds, sizes of movements, levels and pathways. E.g. use smooth, flowing, large movements, then try stiff, jerky, small movements; use curving, indirect pathways then sharp, zig zag pathways; make your movements be only on a high level then only move on a low level; travel as much as you can (locomotor), then keep your movements on the spot (non-locomotor).

• Inpairsorsmallgroups,learnashortphrase or create one that must include certain movements, e.g. a jump/hop, a spin, a balance, some arm movements, and something twisting.

• Oncethephrasehasbeenlearntorcreatedadd some of the elements that were used earlier in the class when everyone was moving around individually in the space, e.g. one group has to make their movements very slow and use curving, indirect pathways; another group must make their phrase as locomotor as possible; one group must make their movements stay on a high level only; and another group must use small, tight, controlled movements.

• Gettwogroupstopresenttheirdancestothe class at the same time, making sure that they were given contrasting elements to modify their phrases.

• Trydifferentcombinationsofgroupsperforming together. When you have decided which groups go well together, they can spend some time working on their contrasting phrases, seeing if things need to be adapted, e.g. where they stand in the space in relation to each-other; will both groups start at the same time; do some things need to be repeated to highlight the contrasts even more; are both groups going to be constantly moving at the same time, or will there be moments of stillness.

• Performtherehearsedcontrastingphrasesto the rest of the class.

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Ballet Based on shakespeare’s play QUIz TIME WhAT DID yOU LEARN?1. Name six other plays written by

Shakespeare.

2. Around which year did Shakespeare write the play A Midsummer Night’s Dream?

3. Which choreographer first created a ballet based on A Midsummer Night’s Dream?

4. In which continent was it premiered?

Hamlet, Othello, Macbeth, King Lear, The Tempest, Romeo and Juliet and Twelfth Night

1595

George Balanchine

America

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a midsummer niGht’s dream Word puzzleCan you find the following list of words in the puzzle below?

S U M M E R N T Y R E A R D O N LL W A K B W I K H E F W Q S B D SI H P U C Q G I G D I L S F O A TA M E P U U K N F N D H M F E N HM E A E P H P L D A A F E T N I GS D S S F E R D D S N A Q L A C IC S E L G F A I R Y P C W Y E A LA H B S S O D E E L S D E S X N MR O L S J O C V A S T E P D B L AL M O O N B A P M H G B R C E N NE O S G T I T A N I A O T S E O NT T S Z W D K C E I U O Y E W W AT T O G H Q I H M X L G U V Y D GL O M C A U T R U L H Q E E K Y IK B O S S E E N S N L R I N C U LA W E H J H J H T O M E G B X D LW Q U E C G D X A B U A N O O M SE R R E W O L F R T T D I J Y L UO B E R O N M U D T H I K G O D IH E E F G D B R S N B B O T M A RO E D S T C V D E L S C P O R S TD N S K H V E N E O C O B W E B EE F S L G B D I D O R D A R K N MR D Y D I K A G H N U A S G M I EL O V E N S H A K E S P E A R E D

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FAIRYDREAM NIGHTOBERON KING TITANIA

QUEENPUCK BOTTOM HELENADEMETRIUS SHAKESPEARE

LIAM SCARLETTHERMIA LYSANDER COBWEB MUSTARDSEED FLOWER

PEASEBLOSSOM MOTH MOONLIGHTSSUMMERLOVE

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